sans homes. It features a clubhouse with
a full-service restaurant, a bar and an
outdoor patio.

In its previous three acquisitions —
Cypress Lakes Golf Club in Cypress, Texas;
Pebble Creek Country Club in College
Station, Texas; and Longwood Golf Club
in Houston — Triump has reinvested in
its clubs to enhance their appeal.

No. 4 Half of member-ownedclubs struggle with debt

An estimated 50 percent of the 2,500member-owned private clubs operatingin the U.S. have dangerous levels of debt,according to Concert Golf Partners.Concert Golf hasacquired 11 suchclubs during thepast few years. InMay it recapitalizedWest Lake CountryClub — a privateclub in Augusta, Ga.,owned by memberssince 1977 — thusassuming the role ofowner-operator.The deal liquidated long-standingclub debt, freezes dues and bars futureassessments on the membership.

“Members no longer have an ownership
stake in the club, but it has an advisory
board,” said Peter Nanula, who runs
Concert Golf Partners. “We act as a
steward for the members. In terms of real
estate, we are the owner, but the club will
always remain private. We try our best
to make sure it remains very much the
members’ club.”

Nanula, the founder Arnold Palmer
Golf Management and CEO from 1993 to
2000, has amassed $150 million to invest
in and upgrade large-scale private clubs in
major metro areas.

No. 5 Jaworski expands withacquisition

“Jaws” has not given up on golf. RonJaworski, along with partners KenKochenour, Ira Lubert and Joe Williamson,DowningtownCountry Club inDowningtown, Pa.

The new property
joins a portfolio of
five other daily-fee
golf clubs owned
and operated by Ron
Jaworski Golf.

No big changes or renovations areplanned for the course or country club,said BJ Jaworski, executive vice presidentof Ron Jaworski Golf and son of thecompany’s namesake Ron Jaworski, aformer NFL quarterback, whosenickname is “Jaws.”“A lot of times a course is sold whenthere’s something wrong,” BJ Jaworskitold the Daily Local News. “That is notthe case here.”

No. 6 Rounds up inGreat Britain

The golf season is off to a great start in
Great Britain, with rounds up 14 percent
compared to the prior year, according to
Sports Marketing Surveys.

Above average temperatures anddrier weather in January meant that allregions, except Scotland, enjoyed robustgrowth. The Midlands saw the greatestincrease — up 33 percent.

Meanwhile, rounds in the U.S. were up
4. 8 percent through April, according the
PGA’s Performance Trak.

No. 7 Europe showing signsof recovery?

Golf throughout Europe should continueto improve, according to a report byKPMG’s Golf Advisory Practice. Thereport foresees “the start of a meaningfulrecovery” because of “the recent tentativeEuropean economic upturn and thecontinuing initiatives aimed at recruitingnew members.”However, the current picture is a mixedbag. The number of registered golferscontinued to decline, falling 1.8 percent.More than half of the European countriesreported drops. The bright spots werePoland and Greece, which enjoyed bigincreases. Development activity remainsstalled too. Almost the same number ofcourses closed as opened, leaving thecontinent with 6,786 courses, only onemore than in 2013.

No. 8 China’s golfer numbersstill small

For as much attention as China’s golf
industry gets, the number of “core” or
“avid” golfers in the nation remains
small. Citing data provided by Forward
Management Group, China Daily
reports that the nation’s “regular golfer
population” consists of only 410,000
players, the vast majority of them men.

No. 9 Superintendentsalaries rise

The average superintendent salary has
increased 3.2 percent since 2013, the Golf
Course Superintendents Association of
America reported, for an average annual
salary of $85,204 in 2015.

While modest, the growth outpaces
inflation, which has been 2 percent. It also
continues a trend of increases in every
two-year period since GCSAA began
tracking the data in 1993.